


That Unseen Talk about Children

by dsousa



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Canon-compliant (sort of...it's like a filler), F/F, a little bittersweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-21
Updated: 2018-02-21
Packaged: 2019-03-21 22:05:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,285
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13750155
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dsousa/pseuds/dsousa
Summary: Pre 3x05. Sam has a weekend-long conference out-of-town, and Alex keenly volunteers hers and Maggie’s services in teaching Ruby the ins-and-outs of the world of homework.





	That Unseen Talk about Children

“Yeah, sure!”

Maggie had never glared harder. She was pretty sure there’s a scorch mark on Alex’s face. Sam hadn’t even finished her sentence before Alex had cheerfully jumped in with a ‘yes’. And Sam, because she was so grateful and genuinely lovely, had even checked with an “are you sure?”—which seemed to be mainly aimed at a silent Maggie—who didn’t even have time to begin shaking her head until Alex wrapped her arm around her waist and squeezed, nodding for her.

Maggie was not Alex’s bitch. But sometimes, she was honest enough with herself to admit that she really was.

“Of course,” Maggie said, fully aware she sounded like a strangled cat. “We’d love to help...”

“...Ruby,” Alex finished for her.

“Right—well, you guys have my phone number,” Sam said. “I’ll drop her off Friday evening, because my flight is Saturday morning. You know, just in case you have any problems.” She glanced over at Alex’s brilliantly flashy smile, and frowned. “Not that you will, of course.”

“Thanks,” Maggie said. She rubbed her eyes. Work today had been absolutely exhausting. The number of false calls had been through-the-roof, and then she’d been collared into climbing up a tree to rescue a trapped cat. Wrong fucking department of emergencies, but oh well. Oh, and the shootout at the bank downtown. “Promise you we won’t burn her at the stake.”

Sam laughed, tipping her head back, which allowed Alex enough time to elbow Maggie painfully in the ribs. They scowled at each other, with Alex mouthing what she was sure were obscenities at here, and Maggie couldn’t help but grin. Alex had a habit of attempting to furrow her brow when angry, and all she looked like was a mildly pissed-off teddy bear.

“Thank _you_ ,” Sam said earnestly, hauling her satchel across her shoulder before she waved goodbye. “Seriously, you two are gonna make _great_ moms.”

Maggie and Alex both intervened at the same time.

“Thanks—”

“We haven’t really—”

Later on, they’d learn the mistake wasn’t looking after Ruby (although that...was a pretty big fucking mistake). It was that they completely ignored their difference in responses after Sam waved them a cheerful goodbye yet again.

 

* * *

 

  1. **ALEX**



 

“It’s a misconception whenever someone says an element weighs _one_ _thing_ ,” Alex said slowly, dumbing it down as much as possible. If Maggie were here, she could imagine her rolling her eyes. “See. You’ve got the molecular mass of an element here, the moles—sorry, the figure related to _a_ mole of that element—and the molecular weight. When you draw it into a triangle, it makes perfect sense.”

Ruby stared blankly at Alex. “Um, Alex, I...don’t think that’s in our guidance spec.”

“It’s good to know,” Alex said matter-of-factly, so Ruby jotted it down anyway. “Besides, you can impress your mom with your super cool chemistry skills.”

“I’m not sure a triangle will,” Ruby muttered. She caught a glance of Alex’s furrowed brow, and cleared her throat. “But, er, mom’s favourite science was always chemistry, so...”

“Good. I mean, when you get to biochem—”

“Which isn’t a topic at school,” Ruby said hastily.

“I—Right.” Alex tried not to mention the fact that she’d read five biochemistry textbooks by the time she was thirteen, but she’d give Ruby a few more years. Clearing her throat authoritatively, and pretending not to notice that the notes Ruby was scribbling were entirely fake and just line wiggles, she waggled her finger at the kid. “Just be appreciative. When you get Maggie tomorrow, I swear to God, she’ll treat you like a dog.”

“I—I don’t think that’s legal,” Ruby said, a little startled.

Alex laughed. “Maggie _is_ the law.”

Putting the fear of God into people, especially little kids, always seemed to work. Alex kept this in mind as Ruby promptly shut up and started taking better notes, clearly afraid of the shark Maggie would be the next day.

“If she treats me like a dog,” Ruby said cautiously, “Can I at least get a massive takeout tonight? What if she doesn’t feed me?”

“Sweetheart, she’s a cop, not a monster.”

“One and the same,” Ruby muttered.

“What?”

“Mom turned on Fox News once,” Ruby explained.

To be honest, the reason they ended up ordering Domino’s with every side dish on the menu was because a) Alex did not trust her own cooking, even though Sam had Whatsapped her a very simple recipe for Shepherd’s Pie; b) she trusted Maggie’s cooking even less, ever since she’d stumbled home drunk and attempted to microwave a can of chicken and mushroom soup.

And stuffed crust _always_ won you a kid’s approval anyway.

She smiled across the dining table at Ruby, who was happily munching away at her food. Sam was lucky. Heck, _Alex_ was lucky. She was in love with the only person in the world she was sure she wanted to be with, for the rest of her life. And no, they hadn’t discussed kids. But looking at Ruby, all her little mannerisms and her gorgeous smile...

How could Maggie _not_ change her mind?

 

* * *

 

  1. **MAGGIE**



 

“The school curriculum these days—” ‘ _These days’_ , she mocked herself internally. She sounded like an eighty-year old. “They just don’t teach you the practical ways of life. Tell me, are you gonna learn how to overpower some creepy dude in a dark alley, or would you benefit better from excessive usage of chemistry titrations?”

“I mean...” Ruby didn’t look wary, eyeing up Maggie’s gun in her holster. “Alex said that chemistry was her favourite.”

“Biochemistry,” Maggie corrected her. “But it’s cuter to be a nerd only when you’re older.”

“Seriously?”

“Yeah. But, I mean, er, don’t stop chasing your...” Maggie scratched the back of her neck. She wasn’t entirely sure why she’d agreed to this, but it seemed horribly unfair for Alex to take both shifts. So they’d agreed: Saturday would be Alex’s day, and Maggie’s would be Sunday. “...Your...nerdy dreams?”

“I dunno. You think becoming a musician or something is nerdy? I’m not very good at it though.”

“Nobody’s ever _good_ at anything from the get-go. It’s all about hard-work and putting in those hours. I’m sure you’ll be great. What d’you play?”

“Piano.”

“Got piano’s fingers?”

“Apparently so,” Ruby said proudly.

“See? You’re halfway there already.” Maggie gave her a rakish grin as they strolled through the precinct, ignoring the occasional squint of confusion when they saw Maggie accompanied by a more-than-enthusiastic Ruby. By the time they reached the shooting range, Maggie was already pulling out the headphones for the kid.

“You’ve seen these in films, right?” Maggie asked. “That drawing’s your target. Be prepared for some kickback when you shoot. It’ll take you a few rounds to get you used to the gun and then you’ll be able to be shooting accurately.”

“This is _awesome_ ,” Ruby said, grinning. “Okay, so I just aim at that paper drawing?”

“Go for his forehead or his chest. Left side, where his heart is. Or the neck.”

“That’s how you kill someone?”

“Well, that’s—I mean, if you were ever in a super dangerous situation,” Maggie said hastily. _Please do not feedback to Sam that I told her to kill someone_. “And only then. I’m a cop, remember? I have a gun as a safety net. Not as a weapon to flaunt or use on a whim. It’s about responsibility. If I make a mistake, it’s on me.”

Maggie had planned this to perfection.

As she monitored Ruby (very closely) at the shooting range, making sure everything she reloaded with were blanks, she filed two reports and ordered them both burgers and fries for lunch.

Ruby was a great kid. She really was.

Just...Not great enough.

And this wasn’t a slight on Sam. Sam was one of the nicest people Maggie had ever met; one of the most genuine. It wasn’t a slight on Ruby. Ruby was a sweet, gorgeous kid. If Maggie ever wanted kids, she’d likely want someone like Ruby. But hearing every gunshot Ruby had fun with in the shooting range just made her think. What if she forgot her bulletproof vest one day? What if, that day Scorcher had tried to attack the President, she’d been killed, not kidnapped? What if she got shot in the line of duty and left Alex alone with Ruby? Left _Alex_? What if _Alex_ got shot in the line of duty?

Heck, what if they both embarked on the same mission and were _both_ killed?

Maggie watched Ruby, feeling somewhat melancholy. She considered texting Sam, offering up her babysitting services more frequently if she wanted to. It wasn’t that she hated kids. It was that she could see the bigger picture, and she would not ruin her career—or Alex’s—for the sake of another full-time job. And anyone who thought parenting wasn’t a full-time job was either fooling themselves or they were legitimate idiots.

“Oh yeah,” Maggie heard Ruby said enthusiastically on the phone, “Mom, it was so cool! By the fifth time, I managed to shoot the paper man in the head! Hm? Oh, yeah, sure...Maggie, mom wants to speak to you.”

 _Oh_ crap _._

 

* * *

 

“Well...” Maggie flopped over-dramatically across their couch, face-down, as they finally made it home. Alex was busying herself at the kitchen counter, popping open beer bottles, and shook her head with a hint of a smile on her face as she passed Maggie a beer.

“Shove over.”

“You do it.”

“Child.” Nonetheless, Alex lifted Maggie’s legs up so she could ease into the comfort of their couch, with Maggie’s legs resting carelessly against Alex’s lap. “So... _that_ was a weekend, huh?”

“Mm.”

“You know, somehow, _I_ got the majority tail-end of Sam’s rant about you allowing Ruby onto the shooting range. Which, by the way, if you _ever_ take our kids to the shooting range at Ruby’s age, I _will_ kill you.”

Maggie shifted so she could sit up a little straighter, her legs still resting comfortably on Alex’s lap. She could feel Alex’s hand massaging over her calf muscle, and she blinked a few times. It felt as if her stomach had dropped through her body and plopped unceremoniously onto the floor. _Our kids_. She thought about Eliza Wilkie, and shitty Valentine’s Day, and Nebraska, and being fourteen, and suitcases...

It’d never happen. Not if it was her and Alex. But family—the definition of family—had changed drastically ever since Maggie’s growing involvement with the DEO. Family no longer meant her mother or her father or her aunt. Family and love and adoration and the _world_ —and all the worlds that existed beyond—meant Alex Danvers. Family meant Kara, and J’onn, and Winn, and James...

“Maggie?” Alex’s voice was soft, and Maggie jolted slightly, realising her heavy eyes had slipped shut for a moment. “We can get in bed.”

“You really want a kid, don’t you?” Maggie asked instead, closing her eyes again. She couldn’t quite look at Alex yet. How was she supposed to word “ _I don’t think I’m ever going to want them_ ” without running the risk of losing the love of her life?

Yes, it was a sudden swerve in conversation, but the conversation _matter_ was not ridiculous between a couple like them.

“Yeah, definitely.” Alex smiled fondly into space, oblivious to Maggie’s growing discomfort. “I’ve gotten so _used_ to looking after Kara—but Kara didn’t come until I was a teen. I just...I sometimes look at people’s kids and wonder what it’s like to have a newborn, all yours, all...so small...”

“Mm...” The notion of a baby shitting in a nappy was enough to put Maggie off. It didn’t, of course, take precedence over her job—and her ambitions for future progression. She knew it; the Captain knew it; the entire squad knew it. Maggie Sawyer wasn’t gonna be a Detective all her life, and sacrificing a sure-fire promotion for the sake of a child...

As selfish as it sounded, Maggie just couldn’t. She’d worked too hard for this. She’d faced off against her shitty, homophobic father. She’d worked old cases and extra hours and skipped lunch and coffee and sleep to get herself here.

It sounded all kinds of wrong. Alex was a fucking _DEO Agent_. But Maggie could _not_ afford kids right now.

“You...Don’t sound that keen,” Alex observed, hesitating as she massaged Maggie’s legs.

“Just thinking, babe. I just...I guess I never really thought about kids.”

“Did Ruby change your mind?”

Maggie dipped her head. “I wish she had, Alex.”

“It’s okay.”

It wasn’t.

Alex shifted so they sat side-by-side, and leant over to kiss Maggie, ever so softly. It reminded Maggie of their first kiss, where Alex’s nervous energy had sent shudders all the way from the top of her neck to the soles of her feet. Maggie’s tired eyes fluttered shut as she cupped Alex’s face gently, deepening their kiss.

“Maybe we should talk about it,” Maggie said quietly, quickly pressing another kiss to Alex’s lip.

“We will,” Alex promised. She’d meant it at the time. “We still have time.”

They didn’t. But as Alex shucked off her thin blouse, unbuttoning Maggie’s belt-buckle and shirt, time was lost as they undressed each other, exploring every inch of each other’s skin—like they hadn’t memorised it already. _We still have time_ , Alex had said, and Maggie held onto it. Right up until the day time ran out, and neither of them had noticed the countdown warning.

“I love you,” Maggie whispered against Alex’s mouth, burying her face against Alex’s neck.

Alex moaned as Maggie sucked on the skin there, her hips bucking up. “I love _you_.”

 

* * *

 

They both still meant it.


End file.
